Obviously, some people are duped into being threatened by the law or by an authority and believe it is true. If it is true, then they must act. Then they realise the error all too late
But when you are on the receiving end of a threat that isn't threatening at all, that's when it is clever. We have tests at work to detect whether we are on the ball or not.
Where they are clever is by the way that the scam is presented and often the luck of timing. The way it is presented is as if I was just posting some info to you now - calm and instructional, treating you as a friend, pleasant and polite. No threats. No "if you don't do this, there will be consequences". Perhaps they take on a different persona. Maybe a friend of yours. It can be a furnace pot of an issue that not one person is clever enough to see through - a perfect storm.
It also requires a bit of luck because what this person may be requesting might actually be true. It's just that it is a hoax, not someone you know.
When you see these tests in action, you realise how clever it is. You also realise you have to be cleverer than the hoax itself.
OK, so what am I going on about ? How can it be so clever that even the best decipher of puzzles has difficulty working it out ?
The online activity we now all consider to be the usual way can cause absolute havoc. What I am about to convey has happened again and again. It's so easy to do but it needs a bit of lady luck as well. But you don't need that much luck to obtain a sum of money through irregular and illegal activity.
With the audience that are reading these threads right now, someone here probably owes money to someone else. Maybe a mate, for an event. Maybe a company that you've just bought something from. The best one is a mate you owe some money to.
Their email account is hacked and a new email is sent to their contact list. It asks for some money.
The way they address you looks strange because he/she doesn't usually refer to you as "Hello" but then mitigates that in text that he is referring to the royal group - so it may be "Hello All". They have recently changed their bank and would like now that you place the money in the account they now prescribe. So alarm bells go off - strange that they have never mentioned this before. But it could be true. We do change bank accounts.
But then they overlay this with a sob story that their bank account was hacked. Or, the better one is that this bank they now use has better rates for what they need it for. Anyway, that event you owe me for, please pay in here.
Now you might twig from something in those lines that this is a hoax. You owe someone money for an event and they are asking you to send the agreed amount that you had previously spoken of to a new bank account that was sent by your friend from your friend's email address.
None of the above is particularly clever at all. If you're good at this, you've already seen it. Some don't though. That doesn't mean they are stupid. In a busy life, we just get that job done - just pay it. You owe that money to your mate and it's done.
No, none of the above is particularly clever. The gold wrapping comes over now! The Gotcha!
"Just pay me when you can, even at the event".
The hoaxer looks like he doesn't care whether the money is coming across or not. Now that is clever because it leads you down the path that no one sending a hoax for cash wouldn't care.
You then pay your mate in cash.
Seriously, it is clever stuff. Being bombastic is no way to persuade people. You'll get a few but most will see through it. It's the gently gently, catchy monkey approach. Those are clever.
